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It begins with the panicky thoughts in an actor’s head as the curtain rises on a performance of "Twelfth Night" in Washington DC at which most of the characters – senators, slam poets, billionaires, mercenaries, actors, lobbyists – are either performers in the play or members of the audience.

Karen is a peace lobbyist desperate to put forward an amendment that might entice military contractors into building infrastructure rather than weapons. Jonathan is an actor whose big break may be happening that night as an understudy in the play. Harry, an unlucky-in-love Shakespeare scholar, falls for a best-selling travel writer sitting next to him. János, a jaded Hungarian diplomat, and Bartholomew, an uber-confident slam poet, are both blindsided with passion for the leading actors on stage.

Love, lust, mistaken identities and valiant idealism draw this unlikely grab bag of lovers – ranging in age from twenty to eighty – into lobbying for Karen’s bill. Their efforts bring exuberant romantic entanglements as each confronts the quandaries of opposing war and discovering love in a world of armed drones and random emoticons.

PRAISE

Richard Tillotson tells a delightful story of love and politics. How do lovers, young and old, find each other in the tech-mad 21st century? How to give peace a chance? "What You Will on Capitol Hill" is a playful field guide to lobbying the government and to wooing hearts.– Maxine Hong Kingston Author of "Woman Warrior" and "The Fifth Book of Peace"

Lives and philosophies collide, leading to romantic infatuations, rivalries and self-revelation. Tillotson’s commentary on the performative aspects of politics, media and even personal relationships is as astute as it is timely. . . . Tillotson’s dark humor and satire are also delightful.– Kirkus Reviews

Wait ’til you see his updated twist on Malvolio’s cross-gartered yellow stockings. It’s truly inspired … In “What You Will on Capitol Hill,” what you get is a thoughtful, witty, and exquisitely entertaining comedy of manners that’s exactly as you like it.– The Literary Hill

A terrific job! These are authentic characters, and the description of the lobbying process fits well with what I have experienced on the Hill. An opening line in one of Martin Luther’s books says, "Only humor and ridicule will drive out the devil." I think the serious but humorous love stories in this novel may make the devil uncomfortable.– Joe Volk Executive Secretary Emeritus, Friends Committee on National Legislation

Read information about the author

Richard Tilloton’s first novel, “Acts of God While on Vacation,” was a National Semi-Finalist for the Amazon Breakthrough Novel Award and was named best Hawai‘i fiction book of the year by the Honolulu Star-Advertiser. He is also a playwright, screenwriter, and a former Peace Corps volunteer, a time when he built water systems and latrines for Iban longhouses in Sarawak, Malaysia on the island of Borneo. He and his wife live in Honolulu and often travel to work and volunteer in Washington D.C.

He graduated from Grinnell College in Iowa and earned two Masters degrees, one in English literature from the University of Washington in Seattle and a second in Educational Communications from the University of Hawaii, where he was an East-West Center grantee.

Richard worked for a number of years in advertising in Hawai‘i writing ads for major hotels and airlines as well as for destinations like Waikiki, Maui, and the state of Hawai‘i itself. He also wrote ads for pizza, mortuaries, film festivals, furniture, and dozens of other products and services ranging from tacos to banks. His work appeared in or on TV, radio, newspapers, magazines, bumper stickers, balloons, and a poolside bar. During that time he also wrote plays, novels, and screenplays in the evenings. He now does his writing after breakfast and a cup of coffee and only writes ads when no one pays him for it. This includes pro bono work for the Hawaii Book and Music Festival, where he serves on the board.